Having impressed with her directorial debut The Edge of Seventeen, Kelly Fremon Craig returns to the director’s chair for Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret an adaptation of Judy Blume’s classic novel. Margaret Simon (Abby Ryder Fortson) is a bright New Yorker. Her life is turned upside down when her mom Barbara (Rachel McAdams) and Dad Herb (Benny Safdie) announce, with some help from Grandma Sylvia (Kathy Bates), that the family is moving to New Jersey. Now in a new school, Margaret must deal with being away from her beloved Grandma, making new friends, boys, her changing body and deciding her own faith. Just maybe God can help?

Margaret quickly makes three new friends: Nancy (Elle Graham), Janie (Amari Alexis Price), and Gretchen (Katherine Mallen Kupferer). Led by Nancy, the girls form a “secret club” and obsess over boys, bras and waiting to get their periods. Changes to their bodies are as scary as they are exciting.

Meanwhile, Margret struggles with her feelings on religion. Her mother is Christian. Her father is Jewish. Not wanting to force their feelings on her, they have left it to Margret to choose her own faith. She prays to God for guidance on issues ranging from puberty to familial relationships.

A big fan of Judy Blume, I remember reading Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret at least three times. The perfect demographic, I related to much of what Margret was going through at the time. Through the years, I’ve wondered why there was no film version. Whatever the reason, the wait was worth it.  Kelly Fremon Craig (who also wrote the screenplay), has delivered a pitch perfect, delightful film. a compelling script is brought to life by an outstanding cast. Kathy Bates is funny as a doting Grandma and Rachel McAdams has her best role in quite awhile as a mother helping her daughter deal with her feelings about religion and family, while she’s dealing with her own. At the center of it all, is a charming and insightful performance by Abby Ryder Fortson as the title character.

Presented in the 1.85:1 aspect ratio, Lionsgate’s 1080p transfer looks beautiful, giving the 1970’s era film a nice shine. Colors are bold and rich throughout. Detail is strong, with a pleasing level of clarity. depth of field is excellent’ allowing for clean movement. Blacks are deep and inky throughout. Skin tones are natural and consistent throughout. A nice level of grain gives things a filmic appearance throughout. The print is clean from start to finish.

The Dolby Atmos track is excellent, though this dialogue heavy film doesn’t give it much to do. Nonetheless, the spatial audio does provide some nice depth. The subwoofer extenuates some of the natural effects, while the rear speakers creates effective ambiance. Dialogue is clean, clear and concise throughout.

 English, English SDH, French and Spanish subtitles are included.

The following extras are available:

  • Finally That Time: Making Margaret (HD, 19:55) A nice EPK with some great interviews with the key cast and crew.
  • Are You There Margaret? It’s Me, Judy (HD, 8:00) A welcome sit down with Judy Blume.
  • The Secret Crew Club: Margaret and Friends (HD, 7:58) Interview with the young girls in the cast.
  • Bringing the Period to Life: Designing Margaret (HD, 10:07) A look at the film’s retro production design.
  • Deleted Scenes (HD, 1:35)
  • Roundtable Discussion (HD, 6:12) Featuring Judy Blume, James L. Brooks, Abby Ryder Forston, Kelly Fremon Craig, Rachel McAdams and Julie Ansell.
  • DVD
  • Digital Copy